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« Ausiello Report
Upfront Prattle Day 1: Everwood, Scrubs and More!
Just returned from NBC's upfront festivities and before I get to the highlights, let me get to a major lowlight: I heard from two separate sources this afternoon that Everwood is, in fact, dead. I'm choosing not to believe it until I hear something official on Thursday, but I thought you should all be prepared for the worst. (Scroll down to my previous blog posting for some "positive" news about Veronica Mars.) Now, here's a quick recap of NBC's big day:
* Tina Fey's comedy 30 Rock and the football soap Friday Night Lights looked the most promising based on the clips shown. The audience laughed out loud several times during the 30 Rock promo, and I swear I thought the Friday Night trailer was going to get a standing ovation.
* The trailer the network put together for Heroes was a little too cheesy for my taste, but I still believe this is gonna be one of my fall faves.
* The clips for Aaron Sorkin's pricey Studio 60 got a chilly reception from the crowd — not to mention an industry friend of mine who just saw the entire pilot. "It does not live up to the hype," my spy said in an e-mail. "It was very average. I didn't feel like I was watching something special that was gonna change the face on TV."
* The casts of The Office and My Name Is Earl appeared on stage and explained what it meant to them to be a part of NBC's storied Thursday-night lineup. I don't recall any of their specific lines, but trust me when I say their shtick was the highlight of the nearly three-hour presentation. On a lesser note, we caught a preview of the first Office webisode, slated to debut this summer exclusively on NBC.com, and it landed like a thud with the advertiser-heavy crowd. The plot centered around the accounting staff trying to track some missing funds. I think I'll take a pass on the webisodes and stick to the real thing.
* I cornered NBC prez Kevin Reilly at the after-party and asked him about a troubling line in NBC's press release that said Scrubs "will return to the NBC schedule at some point." Reilly said holding Scrubs until mid-season this year "was like the best thing we did. They had more time to [work on the episodes] and I think it ended up being great creatively for the show." So it's not returning until January? "Not necessarily January," he said, "but it won't be on in September."
* Also ran into my buddy Greg Grunberg (Heroes) and, after congratulating him on his, um, scene-stealing cameo in M:i:III, asked him who he's playing in JJ's Star Trek flick ('cause we know he's gonna be playing someone). "I want to play a young Scotty," he said, adding that he told JJ, "'There's no way that I'm going to sit through five hours of makeup for one line.' And JJ looked at me and said, 'Yeah, you will.'" All joking aside, Greg said, "I think they're going to give me a bigger part. I hope. I want a really nice part." Speaking of potential casting coups, Greg revealed that he's trying to get his serial costar Amanda Foreman a role on Heroes.
I'll have more on NBC's upfront day in Wednesday's Ask Ausiello. Rushing home now to watch Grey's, 24, Prison Break and [sigh] Everwood.
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May 15, 2006 8:02 PM
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Please, please, please.
React to the Grey's finale! I need your reaction.
I know I'll be freaking out! I need others to freak out with me.
So naturally, I came to you.
Be honored. Be freaked.
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May 15, 2006 8:07 PM
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No more Everwood??? Noooooooooooooooooo!
Well, on the upside, I'll have an hour more per week to devote to my schoolwork. Still. I'm crushed.
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May 15, 2006 8:13 PM
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If Everwood is dead, that means Veronica Mars is gonna live! YES!!!!!! I'm hoping your rumor is true, Michael, deperately hoping...
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May 15, 2006 8:27 PM
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I feel for all the Everwood fans.  I'm right there with you, being an Invasion fan.
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May 15, 2006 8:30 PM
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This can't be happeniiiiiiiiiiing! Everwood canceled! No way I'm dead with it just so you know! I won't believe it! I won't!
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May 15, 2006 9:13 PM
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Speaking of GREYS, during today's episodes of the ABC Daytime soaps, KABC 7 had their afternoon preview of of the 4pm newscast & the anchor was previewing a story about tonights season finale of GREYS and she called it the SERIES finale!!! I emailed the station & then the anchors were joking about it & they said "well we hope it'll be the season finale tonight." WELL DUH! Why wouldn't ABC renew it? Anyhow, that sucks about EVERWOOD. But come Thursday, I'm sure it won't be the only show that doesn't go over to The CW. But as for the NBC stuff, it doesn't sound too promising. No offensive Mike, but you don't sound very enthusiastic about the upcoming fall sked. And I think Kevin Reilly really wanted to say was ".... Scrubs will come back if one of our new shows fail. Otherwise, it'll be rerun free come January." Right?
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May 15, 2006 9:13 PM
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if this is true. THE CW is getting off on the wrong foot.
cancelling everwood, killing Reba without a proper finale, picking up 7th heaven??? HELLO what the frack is going on?
needless to say, If everwood doesn't return, i will be very disappointed!
thetvaddict
http://www.thetvaddict.com
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May 15, 2006 10:19 PM
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I'm very sad for Everwood. That show deserved to live. Can some of the Everwood writers go to work for Gilmore Girls? Please?
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May 15, 2006 10:29 PM
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For some sick, sad reason, I'm not at all upset about Everwood's demise...Strange, considering it remains the only TV show I've ever purchased on DVD...I think I'm just in denial, and it'll really hit me once I watch tonight's episode...
But yeah...7th Heaven over Everwood? Weird, but reasonable, ratings-wise...*sigh* Oh well...At least NBC seems to have a killer line-up (fingers crossed on that Studio 60 show...I have high hopes!!)
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May 16, 2006 12:37 AM
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Noooo! Everwood was the one show I wanted to come back this year. Even over Veronica... dang it, dang it. WHY DAWN, why?
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May 16, 2006 1:01 AM
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I am really shocked to hear that Sudio 60 isn't a great show, the pilot script that leaked onto the net was brilliant. Something really must have been lost in the translation.
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May 16, 2006 1:43 AM
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Ausiello, what two sources told you Everwood was...I can't even type it, it's so painful! I refuse to believe anything about these upfronts until the offical annoucement comes out. Everwood has to come back, it just has to; the show has so much more to offer!! These past few weeks have just been awful, I've been wanting Thursday to get here for so long, it's torture waiting. The worst part is hearing rumors and not being able to tell if they are true or not...Everwood must come back! OTH is just a stupid teen soap and is trying (and failing) to be like The OC. VM isn't a terrible show and I'd like to see it come back, but if I had to choose between VM and EW, well I'd choose EW in a heartbeat! As for 7th, the WB advertised it all year long as "Countdown to Good-bye" and made the last episode clearly the SERIES FINALE. It's over, it had a nice 10 year run, but it's over, what else could they possibly offer us? Long live Everwood!!!!!!!!!
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May 16, 2006 7:03 AM
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Veronica Mars surviving and Everwood dying have nothing to do with one another. It's pretty obvious that it was 7th Heaven that killed Everwood...dueling family shows. I don't think Veronica was in any real danger since it's been talked about for months pairing Veronica with Gilmore Girls on Tuesdays.
Since I could care less about Everwood and I am a huge Veronica Mars fan, then I am OK. I am a big Invasion fan so that's incredibly sad news. I am especially upset at the rumors that Invasion dying is JJ Abrams fault (damn, you...Abrams!) I am a big time Lost & Alias fan so I can't hate on him too much...but that's pretty selfish to get a terrific show like Invasion cut so that garbage like What About Brian (which less people watched and didn't have the critical support like brilliant Invasion) could survive. That's wholly unfair. I don't feel sorry for Everwood, which unlike Invasion, had almost no ratings. Invasion has a nice audience and if it wasn't for WWE's Smackdown stealing 2 hours of air time on Fridays. I think Invasion would be picked up by CW and placed there with my other new favorite, Supernatural.
(I am of course hopeful that Smallville and Supernatural are safe for Thursdays which is becoming a bigger TV night again for me with the NBC comedies and the new "Studio" show).
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May 16, 2006 8:03 AM
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Can you hear that...? It is the dreadful sound of my heart achingly breaking. I will not try and understand why CW may have chosen not to renew EVERWOOD because, honestly, it is beyond me. All I know is if this information comes true then the world of television will have lost one of the purest, most realistic, greatest show that has ever been on the small screen.
The naive little girl still living in me is slowing dying.
Still, thank you Ausiello for giving us the news so early. I will be prepared for the Black Thursday to come.
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May 16, 2006 8:33 AM
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